It is my impression that when it comes to dough, the KitchenAid machines are intended more for making bread dough than pizza dough, and in fairly large batch sizes and with a fair amount of gluten development as is usually desired with bread doughs. In my case, I make small batch sizes (with about 21-22 ounces being tops) and I intentionally underknead the dough and rely more on biochemical gluten development. I found that with the whisk-paddle-C-hook attachments, I am able to get away with using only the stir/1 speeds, except that I will occasionally use the 2 speed for the larger dough batch sizes toward the end of the kneading process. Even then it is only for short durations, and I will often finish the kneading by hand, especially if the C-hook I use fails to do its job, which is quite frequent. I also stick with the lower speeds because I want to minimize heat buildup in the dough. Using this overall regimen, I have not detected any signs that the machine is about to expire any time soon. In my mind, I feel that I am making very efficient use of the KA machine for my particular purposes, even though my methods may not be in compliance with the KA recommendations and instructions.

I too ONLY use Level 1 or Stir when mixing my pizza dough. I tend to perform short durations, comprised of intermittent 1 minute cycles while working with smaller batches (2-3 doughs at a time), followed by hand kneading. Interestingly enough, Chris Bianco commented that while pigmentation loss can be an issue with heat sensitivity, he avoids it by working entirely by hand for pizza. Like A16 though, I like my machine for initial work. To put this in perspective, even though I've put many hours on my small KA, it doesn't get hot while I use it.

I've been very happy with Wisk/Spiral hook, setting 2. I too allow for long ferments, so I use relatively short knead periods.

Maybe it's the near 1,300 gram (50 oz) two dough ball batches I make at once for two 17 inch pies, but mixing at speed two just works better than one. When I prepare a pitcher of water to pour into a bowl to weigh it, I have ice floating in it. My dough goes into the fridge, after some hand kneading, at 64-68°F.

While the top of my KA mixer may be warm, it certainly is not getting hot. It is definitely working though.

Out of curiosity, I tracked down the instruction manual that came with my basic Artisan KitchenAid mixer that I purchased over 20 years ago. In the “Yeast Breads” section, there were a total of 16 recipes, with most of them devoted to breads, buns and rolls. There was one pizza dough recipe, which was fairly typical of the times in that it called for using a full packet of yeast to make a pizza dough within a few hours at room temperature. The instructions for the pizza dough recipe called for adding the salt and oil (olive oil) to the warm water in which the yeast (ADY) had been rehydrated, and then adding the bulk of the flour (I calculated around 71% by volume) and mixing the ingredients at Speed 2. The remaining flour was added ½-cup at a time, also using Speed 2. Under this particular dough mixing regimen, it would be logical that using a lower speed would be hard on the machine because of the relatively high density of the dough. If the flour were to be added to the water (total formula water) on a gradual basis, as I and others on the forum do, then the machine should be able to tolerate lower speeds without sustaining damage.